tivoweb module - xhtml-mp for mobile devices

Inspired by this thread http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=89172&page=1&pp=30&highlight=xhtml
and my recently acquired Nokia 6230 with GPRS, I was keen to access Tivo using the phone. Normal Tivoweb was just too much and the WML tivoweb didn't cut much ice. Seeing how the Nokia 6230 supports XHTML-MP it seemed an ideal opportunity to produce a Tivoweb module to do the basic functions outputting lean and mean XHTML-MP. So here it is for those who want to give it a spin.

I had two constraints. 1) Has to be usable on the Nokia 6230 (such a tiny screen!!); and 2) Keep GPRS data traffic to a minimum - I am on Vodafone pay as you surf not the cheapest, and GPRS isn't exactly broadband speed. Consequently, you don't get reams and reams of data (the largest page size is about 9Kbytes), or CSS, or Javascript, or images. Just text. Use is also made of accesskeys and option groups (part of the XHTML-MP spec).

Being a tivoweb module (not TivowebPlus 2 though), you just unzip the ZIP file and binary ftp the xtivoweb.itcl file to the tivoweb-tcl/modules folder on Tivo. Restart Tivoweb and away you go. It appears on the menu and most browsers will render it, so you can do a test drive without using the phone or PDA. It is also very handy for slow internet connections!

To access it directly from your mobile device, create a bookmark to your tivo and add /xtivoweb to the end of the URL (eg. http://aaa.bbb.ccc.ddd/xtivoweb).

Features to be added:
1) Wishlist mtc

This works nicely with my Nokia 6230 and has been tested with Nokia series 40 emulators. The Nokia 6230i might need to be put into extra small font mode though. Being XHTML-MP it should work with a lot of other mobile devices. There is one small gotcha. The module generates XHTML-MP, but Tivoweb serves it up as a text/html document in the http header. This is usually OK because it is a valid combination in the XHTML-MP specs but, some devices can be picky and might not work 100% (see httpd-tt.tcl note later).

Most devices will work fine with just the xtivoweb module and standard tivoweb. Some devices may be picky and want to have XHTML-MP pages served up as application/vnd.wap.xhtml+xml instead of text/html. If your phone doesn't render xTivoweb correctly in normal mode, there is a replacement httpd-tt.tcl module. Just binary FTP it to the tivoweb-tcl folder to replace the tivoweb version there. Note this is for tivoweb 1.9.4.

Am just about to update my mobile from a geriatric one so will let you know about that in due course.

Even if you are on TMobile WebnWalk in the UK on £1 per day for web browsing their overseas data tariffs zoom up to a highway robbery £7 per MB, so a cut down TivoWeb like yours is essential for overseas mobile use.

Even if you are on TMobile WebnWalk in the UK on £1 per day for web browsing their overseas data tariffs zoom up to a highway robbery £7 per MB, so a cut down TivoWeb like yours is essential for overseas mobile use.

Click to expand...

Vodafone PayAsYouTalk is £7.50 per MB (but fortunately, they charge per KB). Hence my need to keep the data transfer down to a minimum. I will be adding programme search and manual record (they are next on the list).

Vodafone PayAsYouTalk is £7.50 per MB (but fortunately, they charge per KB). Hence my need to keep the data transfer down to a minimum. I will be adding programme search and manual record (they are next on the list).

Click to expand...

I'm sure that we all look forward to seeing their addition to this already excellent module in due course.

Have added manual recording. Seems to work OK but I don't really use this so maybe somebody who does can test it out? Also, as well as record by Date&Channel and record by Date&Time, I have added record by Channel&Time for completeness. Who knows, it might even be useful

Excellent stuff! Works great on my samsung d900. Hadn't tried using the mobile before for accessing the tivo but your module has provided the impetus I needed. Thanks very much for making the effort and sharing it with everyone.

I look forward to the addition of "Get the kids to go to bed" and "Do the washing up" modules in due course

Actually, I'd even pay for those

Until then, accept a hearty (virtual) pat on the back as a token of my gratitude.

I seem to have built in a useful feature (by accident) which is book a season pass for a film. I found this out by calling up film4 and selecting a film I was interested in. I was offered the option to add season pass so I did and it worked!! Tivo spotted that the showing I was looking at had a conflict but found a repeat showing later in the week and sheduled that. AFAIK you can't add a season pass for a film using normal tivo (or tivoweb). This also seems to work for other 'one off' programmes. Bonus

OK I now have a Sony Ericsson V600i that can browse simple web sites of this kind.

I find that functions such as Phone and Info are working absolutely fine on the phone but when I try to use Now Playing or To Do I get as far as a list of dates with selection buttons alongside them I can click to select but when I then try to click to select that date to see the Now Playing or To Do items for that data nothing happens and I am not taken on to the next screen of items for that date.

I definitely have the very latest version of xtivoweb running on my Tivo and have done a Full Reload but still the problem keeps happening.

Is this only affecting me and my Sony Eircsson V600i and if so what could be causing it???

Could be a Sony Ericsson funny. Will see if I can find an emulator and give it a try.

Just to double check can you let me know how far you get:

On Main menu
Select Now Showing.

On Now Showing screen.
The Dates drop down list should have the focus.
Click Select - get list of dates.
Use up and down then Select the date you want.
The Dates drop down list now shows your selected date.
Click Down to move focus to the Showings drop down list.
Click Down again to move focus to the GO button.
Click SUBMIT (select) to press the GO button.

On Now Showing screen.
The Dates drop down list should have the focus.
Click Select - get list of dates.
Use up and down then Select the date you want.
The Dates drop down list now shows your selected date.
Click Down to move focus to the Showings drop down list.
Click Down again to move focus to the GO button.
Click SUBMIT (select) to press the GO button.

You should see a list of Now Showing items for the selected date.

Click to expand...

I select Option 2 for "To Do" on the main menu on the phone browser.

This takes me to a list saying Select in the first line and then next line a circular toggle with the toggle in black has "All days" and then below that a circular toggle which is empty with "Fri 13-Apr 07", "Sat 14-Apr07", "Sun 15-Apr 07" and so on line after line with circular toggle button through to Wed 25-Apr 07. If I select Fri 13-Apr 07" the toggle button focus changes to that day but when I then press Select again with the soft key select button or by pressing down the joystick button to Select that item nothing happens. This is true for all date options including All Days.

The same kind of thing happens with Now Showing. When I select it I get a list with Select in the first line and then All Days with a circular toggle button in the next line which is filled in black by default. I then get the days line by line from Thu 12-Apr 07 going back indefinitely (given how many old programs I have) with a toggle button next to each. Highlighting the item and selecting it turns the toggle button black but selecting it again results in nothing happening instead of a list of Now Showing items for that day appearing.

By contrast on my PC TivoWeb browser for Now Showing I get a drop down list of all dates I can select from and another drop down box with "All Showings", "Deleted", "New", "Expired", "Kept" etc and a Go button underneath to select once I have chosen from both those lists. With To Do I just get one drop down dates box in my PC Tivweb browser and a Go button underneath.

Is the problem that the Sony Ericsson browser can't handle drop down selection lists and insists on showing a toggle button for each day instead? Then when you toggle the day you can't select again to trigger the next stage of the selection process?

It could be that the Sony has a problem with <select> lists. I tried to download the emulator from the sony website but their download verification process doesn't work From what you say, it doesn't sound as if the page is being rendered properly. This is how the first Now Showing screen looks on the Nokia 6230 and the Sony should be similar.